Wichita eagle., 1887-04-10
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A JUDICIAL MURDER.

An, LlcrchanC, Lampert by nalne, mar
ried to wife somewhat younger than him
sef-a handsome woman, fond Of dress and
amusement. And by her he had daugh-
ter, whom the vain mother did her best to
spoil.
Every year Lampert went to the Leipsic
fair on business and in the year 1880 he
resolved, as usual, to attend the fair.
On the evening before he was about to
start he called his wife into their common
bedchanber, and asked her to assist him
in counting his money, which he kept in
a strong iron double locked Golfer beneath
his bed
He always carried his keys about with
him, never laying them aside. Lis wife at
his summons carne with candle into the
room, and he unlocked the chest IN her pres
erce, and brought ont his money to the
table, where he purposcd counting it and
taking from it the sum necessary for his
travelling expenses and for the purchases he
intended making at the Leipsic fair.
The box contained large purse Of leather,
wrapped round with cord and sealed with
his own sirnet. Tho. coin it contained con-
sisted of French pistolcs with the exception
CT six Dutch ducats.
Lampert found the lock untampered with
and tho leather purse as he had left it,
"
brokcn-in a word, ell was in tho condi-
ton in which he had left it, except the con-
tents OF tho purse. As he counted tho money
in the presence Of his wife, twelve pistoles
and ono CT tho six ducats weTc missing.
This. discovery filed him and bis vile with
dismay. They counted the money again,
they searched every corner Of the box,
turncd the bag inside out, but could not
discover the smallest trace Of the missing
coins. Lanpert had written a ticket Of
the amount, when he had inclosed it in the
bag, before Eo sealed it up. How had the
money been distracted without breaking
the seals a1d getting the keys from the mer-
chant?
The room occupied by Lampert and his
wife was SO situated that 10 stranger could
have entered it unobserved during tho day,
and it was quite certain that DO robbers had
broken in during the night.
When the couple had recovered from their
first astonishment they considered who
could have done the deed, and they could
think of no one at all likely to be guilty Of
the theft, except their houselnaid, Marie
Keller, young woman Of %.
The merchant at once summoned her to
the room and charged her with having
stolen tho money. He promised her if she
would confess and make restitution that be
would forgive her, and though he would dis,
miss her from his service he would hush
the matter UP. The girl trerlbled and
nearly fSintcd, but protested her inno-
cence, and SO resolutely refused to allow
her guilt that Lampert and his wife insisted
on examining her bedroom. They made
her lead the way with q candle and stand in
the middle of the room ebile her master
and mistress explored every corner, her
boxes, her bed, her drawers-in a word,
every hiding placs where she could have
slowed away the missing coins.
Tho search had lasted some time without
producing any result, when Frau Lampert,
feeling in the pocket of an Old ragged dress
that lay on tho floor, drew forth one of the
Dutch ducats When this was discovered
Marie Keller burst into tears, and with ve-
hemence reassersed her innocence. She fell
on her knees before her master and mistress,
vowed that she had not taken any coin
from their Golfer, and declared her inabil-
fly to account for the ducat having been
found in her pocket in any other way than
by supPosing some malevolent person had
put it there TO inculpate her, when she was
as guiltless as a newborn child. Her pro-
tests were coldly listened to and disregarded
The evidence of the ducat in her pocket
|
no stranger had robbed him.
According TO Prussian law at the time,
those guilty OF theft werc hanged if the
value OF the articles stolon amounted TO five
4helers-or fifteen shiilings-aai the thief
was moro than IS years old.
Lainpert seems to have been a hard man.
He was very angry at the loss OF his money,
and especially inccnsed at Mario's obstinacy
IN denying having taken it. He told his
wife thGt he would communicate with the
police have the girl arrested, and that he
would let her suffer the consequences
Frau Lampcrt urged him to be nerciful
Let him pardon this first error In the poor
girls conduct, dismiss her ard try to forget
his loss. But Lsmpert would not be pacifed. |
Then she urged that the law WAS cruelty
severe, and that the sum Of money lost was
not ona SO great bat that Lampert would
scarcely feel it, and that he would be GER
tain, later, TO regret his harshness in giving |
over TO death Girl who had yielded to a |
first temptation, and had taken a conpara-
lively insignificant sum Of money.
He knew that it was possible 10 closely |
reproduce a signet with bread, but this re- |
quuircs considerable time The bread must |
be Wei worked. the impression taken /
while tao bread is soft; then it must be al |
involved double opening of his chest, once
to take the cast OF the seal and again to |
steal the money and rcseal the bag But
how had Marie got hold of his keys? That |
was impossible. IT, however, she could !
take the impress of his seal, she could take
also that Of the lock. So he reasoned, tho
robbery lad been committed; but this
means adopted showed that the girl was
adroit in tho art, and that in oil probability
she belonged TO a gang Of thieves This
suspicion was corroborated By the fac. that
none of the money was recovered except one
ducat. The rest sne had passed into the
hands of her confederates
Lampert, having turned deaf ear to his
wlfe's romonstranceS, went to the nagis-
trste, obtained an order for the arrest Of
Msirie Keller, and few hours later she was
Town into prison.
No sooner was this done than Frau LAM
cert sent to Marie's mother, q poor woman
living in Berlin, and requested that she
would come to her. The poor woman was
In great trouble; she could not believe in
her daughters guilt, but was unable to
guess who was the thief. Frau Larnpert
told her that the girl had been 4 good SER
vans and had never hitherto given her en-
occasion to mistrust her; she added that the
girl Marie made a great mistake in refusing
to acknowledge her crime, and promised to
give the mother the missing sum ot money
If Marie would confess her guilt, and refund
Larapers through the mother.